Development and Preliminary Validation of a Multidimensional Psychosocial Assessment Strategy for Young Adults With Cancer.

OBJECTIVE: Regular psychosocial assessment is a best-practice guideline for young adult oncology care, but multipurpose, multidimensional, developmentally appropriate patient-reported outcome measurement strategies for young adults with cancer are lacking. This study reported on the development and preliminary validation of the Young Adult Psychosocial Assessment Strategy (YA-PAS), a tool designed to meet this clinical need. METHODS: The YA-PAS was developed based on the literature and clinician feedback. 20 young adults with cancer participated in cognitive interviews to provide feedback on complexity, readability, and applicability to inform measure refinement. Following refinements, 100 young adults with a history of cancer participated in an observational study including a preliminary evaluation of YA-PAS factor structure, internal consistency, test-retest reliability, construct and criterion validity, feasibility, and acceptability. RESULTS: Cognitive interviews and psychometric evaluation informed modifications and resulted in a measure with 9 domains (anxiety, depression, cognitive functioning, post-traumatic stress, family stressors, support, social isolation, self-efficacy for symptom management, and self-efficacy for medication management) and nonscoring items assessing substance use, life stressors, resources, educational/vocational status, and relationship status. 8 of 9 domains demonstrated acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach's α ≥ 0.70), substantial (r = 0.61-0.80) or almost perfect (r > 0.80) test-retest reliability, and evidence of domain and cut-point validity. 89% of participants were able to complete the YA-PAS within 20 min and 87% were satisfied with the measure. CONCLUSIONS: The YA-PAS demonstrated promising psychometric properties, feasibility, and acceptability. Clinical implications and research recommendations are discussed.

Complete durable response of a pediatric anaplastic oligodendroglioma to temozolomide alone: Case report and review of literature.

Anaplastic oligodendroglioma (AO) is rare in children. Treatment typically consists of varying combinations of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. We present a pediatric case of frontal lobe AO with periventricular subcallosal extension and local leptomeningeal involvement. The isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) wild-type tumor was MGMT methylated and contained an ATRX mutation, BRAF alteration, and 1p/19q co-deletion; a combination of alterations mostly encountered in pediatric oligodendrogliomas. The patient underwent a near total resection and had a complete, durable response to temozolomide alone, suggesting that conservative management without radiation may be appropriate in some cases. We review the literature of this uncommon subtype of glioma in children.

Targeted Therapies for the Treatment of Pediatric Non-Hodgkin Lymphomas: Present and Future.

Pediatric Non-Hodgkin Lymphomas (NHL) are a diverse group of malignancies and as such treatment can vary based on the different biological characteristics of each malignancy. Significant advancements are being made in the treatment and outcomes of this group of malignancies. This is in large part due to novel targeted drug therapies that are being used in combination with traditional chemotherapy. Here, we discuss several new lines of therapy that are being developed or are in current use for pediatric patients with NHL.